Raiwen Talethar
Raiwen Talethar was a high elven diviner and honorary member of the Heroes of Blackbridge. The wizardess traveled from the faraway forest kingdom of Gaelathara to attend the Arcane Academy, inspired by Tegwen's example after a long life among the elves. She journeyed along with her brother, Rydel Talethar; however, he fell ill, and Raiwen put aside her studies to seek a cure. After her brother's death, Raiwen joined the Arcane Academy as its Mistress of Divination for a time; however, she was reunited with the Heroes of Blackbridge, who were then called the Dawn's Herald, in a meeting arranged by Tegwen herself. The Dawn's Herald called upon her to speak on their behalf against the charges that they had murdered Baron Matthew Averill of Hambor, and the young elf readily agreed to one last adventure with her old comrades. After the trial, Raiwen continued working with Tegwen in Agrawel, although she departed when the Dawn's Herald disappeared. When the Arcane Academy finally closed its doors, Raiwen escaped the Deluge and joined forces with Princess Andraste Ansravain, Tegwen, and the Last Kingdom, where House Arvendon made its last stand. Profile Raiwen was a lovely, young elf maiden with brown hair, sharp features, and brown eyes that seemed at times overly timid or naive. However, she also carried a deep sorrow that she rarely let show, and had several secrets of her own. She never told the Heroes of Blackbridge or the Dawn's Herald the truth about her brother and his loss, and kept much of her true intentions secret. For much of her time in Noslith she was fragile, and only when it fell did she find her purpose among the wizards of the Triumvirate. Personality Raiwen was naive and awkward for most of her life, unprepared for the dangers of Noslith in comparison to what she had seen in Gaelathara. Her journey with the Heroes of Blackbridge, and her later experiences with the Dawn's Herald both hardened her and strengthened her will. Raiwen was fond of the Gaelatharan royalty and even more fond of Tegwen the Enchantress, whom she considered an idol. The chance to work with Tegwen helped Raiwen overcome her deep grief at the loss of her brother, and she joined the Last Kingdom as a fierce heroine. History Seeking to concoct a cure for the demonic disease, Raiwen identified a legend in a forbidden book in the libraries of the Arcane Academy of Bregate about the products of the Malgarian tree. Finding rumors of a grove of the demon trees amidst the forests of the Wosswood, Raiwen journeyed from Bregate out to Blackbridge, where she met Lemuel, Aldus, Peredur Gower, and Volkarr when they intervened on her behalf against a band of peasants that were harassing her in the common room of the Cat & Chicken. Raiwen then joined the Heroes of Blackbridge, finding common interest and seeking protectors against the monsters of the Wosswood, fearing rumors that demons likewise dwelled within. Raiwen's will was soon hardened by the dangers of the Wosswood and the terrors of the Rasping Pox as she journeyed with the adventurers, fighting goblins, kobolds, and other monstrosities, and nearly falling in battle at the Shambling Temple. Nonetheless, within that ruin, she claimed the Abyssal leaves she had been seeking, and after secreting them into her pouch, made plans to depart from the group. Aligning with her goals once more, the Heroes of Blackbridge left for Bregate after a final trip to the Dwarven Crucible to learn the affiliation of the assassin and complete their mission from the Church; Raiwen left with them. When they arrived, Raiwen sadly departed with little explanation of her true reasoning, leaving her friends in the dark as she returned to the Arcane Academy. Her concocted cure failed, and her brother soon died of the Rasping Pox. Frustrated at her inability to save him and driven to sorrow, Raiwen devoted herself to her studies and soon become the Mistress of Divination, keeping her class schedule even when the quarantine on Lowport broke and Godsgrove fell to the plague. Fate reunited her with Lemuel, although she soon learned that Volkarr had fallen to the Infernal Pact. Lemuel's new adventuring party, the Dawn's Herald, had called upon her, through the power of Tegwen herself, to speak for them as the accused party in the trial over the murder of Matthew Averill of Hambor. Raiwen readily agreed, although she spoke one silent final farewell to Rydel's grave. Raiwen assisted the Dawn's Herald in their acquittal and became a sort of apprentice to Tegwen in the meantime, serving the Enchantress in her tower at Castle Arvendon. Raiwen continued serving Tegwen for a time even after her departure, yet the disappearance of the Dawn's Herald saw Raiwen return to Bregate to be by her brother's side. Eventually, the discovery of Caer Cythraul's location by the Sons of Rhydderch and Elric Thrussell and its subsequent fall lead to the closing of the Arcane Academy. Raiwen traveled south, still in contact with Tegwen, and soon joined with her and the Last Kingdom amidst the Sunscourge Heresy.